Kevin Erickson, President | Kevin grew up on Vancouver Island and lived in Alberta for ten years before returning to the west coast in 2018. Prior to joining CMHA, Vancouver-Fraser, he served on the board of directors with CMHA, Central Alberta. Kevin is the founder of Leadershyft, a management consulting and leadership coaching firm that focuses on developing highly-effective leaders, teams, and processes. He holds an MBA in Organizational Leadership and is a certified Executive Coach, Change Management Professional, and Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt. Kevin is currently completing a Master’s in Counselling Psychology and looks forward to working directly with individuals experiencing mental health challenges. Since physical health is critical to mental health, Kevin can be found hiking, running, and playing guitar during his personal time.
Wayne Arondus, Vice President | Corporate and community leader passionate to give back to local organizations. Currently the Chief Operating Officer for the Manufacturing Safety Alliance of BC working to support health, safety and wellness within the manufacturing sector of BC. Driven to support workers, making workplaces safer and addressing a much broader risk of mental health in the workplace. Wayne has been a business executive for over 25yrs leading organizations across North America. It has always been a desire to give back and support local community organizations. Wayne has served on several Boards as a Director including Habitat for Humanity Greater Vancouver, CHMA BC and currently the Douglas College Foundation. Inspired to be a tri sector leader, Wayne is a past member of the 2012 Governor Generals Leadership Conference of Canada and continues to encourage other Canadians to understand how they can be better community leaders. Committed to making a difference, supporting organizations and people is a passion and Wayne looks forward to serving and helping the CMHA Board.
Eric Rae, Treasurer | Eric Rae is a Partner in the Technology Risk Consulting group at KPMG LLP (Canada), where he focuses on Digital and Technology Assurance, Risk Consulting, Cybersecurity, Privacy, Blockchain, and emerging A.I. technologies.
He holds a Bachelor of Technology in Network Security from the British Columbia Institute of Technology. Amongst a suite of credentials, he is a Certified Internal Auditor (CIA), Certified Information Security Manager (CISM), Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), and accredited to provide CSA Star Level 2 Attestation reports through his Certificate of Cloud Auditing Knowledge (CCAK).
Sameera Ismail, Secretary | Running for her first term, Sameera is a director of Titan Law Corporation and is the Chair of the Scholarship Committee at Voices of Muslim Women. Sameera has a Bachelor’s degree in psychology and is a lawyer that focuses her practice on immigration and refugee clients from around the world. She has worked extensively with victims of human trafficking, torture, civil war, systemic discrimination, and other traumatic events. Sameera is passionate about her work and applying her skills to help her clients secure an opportunity for a new life. Through her work, Sameera has learned about the active and immediate impact that mental health can have on a person’s ability to function in everyday life, and to express oneself. Sameera is excited to contribute and learn from the CMHA board. In her free time, she enjoys boxing, running, learning to golf, and exploring Vancouver and all it has to offer.
Adan Moallemi, Director | Adan is a graduate student studying regeneration following spinal cord injury at UBC’s school of biomedical engineering. He also holds a Bachelor of Science in neurobiology from UBC. Adan’s passion is addressing the mental health needs of youth and especially university students. As an undergraduate, Adan recognized the need for student-led initiatives to end the stigma surrounding mental illness. This led him to co-found Drop the Puck for Mental Health, a charity hockey game which brought significant mental health awareness to UBC and raised nearly $100,000 for the CMHA, Vancouver-Fraser. In addition, Adan has continued to be a part of various committees and organizations aimed at improving the student experience on campus. Adan is looking forward to bringing a different perspective to the board that complements and builds on the exceptional work already being done within CMHA, Vancouver-Fraser.
Alyssa Wiens, Director | Alyssa is a certified financial planner (CFP) and has been working in the field of finance for 11 years, specializing in retirement planning and corporate tax planning. Alyssa has always been committed to giving back and has been involved in various humanitarian efforts throughout the years, including travelling to the Chitwan district of Nepal and completing a big build with Habitat for Humanity. Having had firsthand experience with the impacts that mental health challenges can create, she has developed a keen interest in promoting mental health awareness, and reducing the stigma surrounding mental illness. She is not only passionate about mental health but physical health as well and is an avid runner, having completed several half marathons. Alyssa would love the opportunity to bring her passion, enthusiasm, and collaboration to the CMHA board, to assist in the journey of helping people lead mentally healthy lives.
Christina Labarca, Director | Running for her first term, Christina is passionate about reducing the stigma around mental health and believes in taking a proactive approach to mental wellness. Christina holds a BA in Adult Education and a Masters of Philanthropy & Nonprofit Leadership from Carleton University. In her twenties, Christina spent 7 years travelling through 70 countries and discovered that she had won the “life lottery”, simply by being born in Canada. As a result, she has always looked for ways to give back and over the years has fundraised, volunteered and supported numerous local and international charity organizations. Christina is the co-founder of a consulting firm, Giving Well, where she works with individuals and organizations to research, evaluate and select charities that align with their goals and values. She believes in the importance of finding purpose in both personal life, and in business.
Hayson Chan |Hayson is an entrepreneur and business consultant who works with private corporations and families in Western Canada and Asia.
Hayson has a veritable track record of success in various settings and a strong background in accounting, tax planning and business consultation. He has helped countless business owners and families to achieve their goals.
Hayson also believe the importance of giving back to the community. He volunteered for a government registered not-for-profit organization for 10 years and acted as the Treasurer for 5 years. His responsibilities included overseeing the finances, communicating with the government liaison officers (funding), organizing fundraising dinners and reporting to all members at the AGM.
In his spare time, Hayson enjoys traveling, photography and outdoor activities.
Jennica Palecek, Director | Former Brazil and New York Financial Analyst to Vancouver Commercial Real Estate Advisor on the leading team across Canada, Jennica has a passion for building out her community while supporting individuals in building out their dreams. While in NYC, she was chosen to lead the WE NYC Program, a financial literacy program supporting 300+ minority/female entrepreneurs. She is a mentor with YWCA tech and 3 other organizations to support women in tech and business. She previously served on the Board for My Artist’s Corner to support mental health in Burnaby, Canada and now serves on two other Boards focused on mental health. She looks forward to supporting mental health and reducing the stigma with the CMHA Team.
Leona Shaw, Director | Leona is passionate about fighting to reduce the stigma surrounding mental health and addictions and advocating for mental health awareness. She is also passionate about the environment and has been working with Indigenous communities throughout Canada for the past 15 years, currently as the Senior Director of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection for a Provincial Indigenous Nation. She has a B.Sc. in Biology and a Masters in Natural Resources and Environmental Studies (MNRES). Leona brings an experienced background in research and policy development as well as relationship building amongst diverse stakeholders. When not working, you will find her outside in nature playing on stunning trails in the local mountains and forests. She is always looking for new landscapes to explore, photograph and share with others.
Nick Neacsu, Director |Nick is a licensed Realtor in British Columbia. For the last 11 years he has worked in Vancouver. Nick has a Bachelors of Science in Marketing from Hawaii Pacific University. He mentors a lot of young agents in the industry, hosts a podcast, and is also involved in volunteering for different organizations throughout the year.
Nick struggled with severe anxiety attacked from the age of 9 to nearly 20 years old. Nick’s brother also suffers with severe PTSD from his tour in Afghanistan with the Canadian Army. Nick feels his mental illness as a child and young adult shaped who he is today in a very positive way. Nick’s involvement with the CMHA Vancouver-Fraser Board of Directors gives him an opportunity to further support an organization that truly helps people with mental illness understand and manage their battle with this stigmatized illness. With his background in business and his personal experience with mental illness, Nick feels he can offer another perspective sounding board that adds value to this incredible organization.
Stanley Chiu, Director | Stanley is a director of Titan Law Corporation and of the Dunbar Community Centre Association. As a lawyer, Stanley represents various local and international companies. He has conducted matters before the Provincial Court of British Columbia and the Supreme Court of British Columbia, in addition to various administrative tribunals. Stanley dedicates a substantial portion of his legal practice to assisting vulnerable persons and has assisted refugees from over twenty different countries, many of whom suffer from mental health challenges and require special accommodations to participate in legal proceedings. Stanley enjoys spending his spare time walking his dog on the field at his alma mater, St. George’s School, or with his family in the outdoors around Vancouver, BC.